Symbol reference · Galdrastafir
Valknut
/ˈvɑːlˌknuːt/Modern compound from Old Norse valr 'the slain' + knútr 'knot'; the Viking-Age name is not recorded
The short answer
Three interlaced triangles carved on Viking-Age monuments: the Gotland picture stones and objects from the Oseberg ship burial. No ancient text names or explains it; its association with Odin and the battle-slain is a modern scholarly reading of where it appears.
The valknut is one of the few genuinely Viking-Age symbols in popular use today. It is carved on the picture stones of Gotland: most famously Stora Hammars I, where it stands directly beside a sacrificial scene attended by a spear-bearing figure usually read as Odin, and appears on the Tängelgårda stone, on wooden objects from the Oseberg ship burial (dated by dendrochronology to 834 AD), and on the Anglo-Saxon Nene River ring.
What it meant, no source says. The symbol is never mentioned, drawn or explained in the Eddas, the sagas or any runic inscription. Even its name is modern: 'valknut', knot of the slain, is a term borrowed from later Norwegian folk usage and applied by scholars in the 20th century.
The standard scholarly reading, argued most fully by Hilda Ellis Davidson, links it to Odin and the dead: nearly every ancient occurrence sits in a funerary or sacrificial context, and Odin possessed the power to bind and loosen the mind, which the interlaced form may echo. That remains an inference, a well-founded one, rather than a documented meaning.
Structurally the carvings use two forms: three separate interlocked triangles (tricursal, as on Stora Hammars) or a single continuous line folded into three (unicursal, as on Tängelgårda). Both forms are ancient; modern jewelry uses both.
What it meant, no source says. The symbol is never mentioned, drawn or explained in the Eddas, the sagas or any runic inscription. Even its name is modern: 'valknut', knot of the slain, is a term borrowed from later Norwegian folk usage and applied by scholars in the 20th century.
The standard scholarly reading, argued most fully by Hilda Ellis Davidson, links it to Odin and the dead: nearly every ancient occurrence sits in a funerary or sacrificial context, and Odin possessed the power to bind and loosen the mind, which the interlaced form may echo. That remains an inference, a well-founded one, rather than a documented meaning.
Structurally the carvings use two forms: three separate interlocked triangles (tricursal, as on Stora Hammars) or a single continuous line folded into three (unicursal, as on Tängelgårda). Both forms are ancient; modern jewelry uses both.
Etymology
valr
Old Norse
the slain, those fallen in battle
knútr
Old Norse
knot
A modern label: the compound reads 'knot of the slain', what the carvers themselves called it is unknown.
Common misconceptions
Common claim
What the record says
“The name 'valknut' is ancient”
No source records what the Vikings called it. 'Valknut' is a modern Norwegian term ('knot of the slain') that scholars borrowed in the 20th century; the Viking-Age name, if it had one, is lost.
“Its meaning is documented”
No text explains the symbol. Its link to Odin and the battle-dead is a scholarly inference from where it appears (beside Odin-associated scenes on the Gotland stones and in a royal ship burial), argued most fully by Hilda Ellis Davidson, not stated in any saga or Edda.
“It appears in the Eddas”
The Poetic and Prose Edda never mention or describe the symbol. It survives only in carvings and objects: the Stora Hammars and Tängelgårda picture stones on Gotland, wooden objects from the Oseberg burial, and the Anglo-Saxon Nene River ring.
Frequently asked questions
Is the valknut a genuine Viking-Age symbol?
Yes. Unlike most staves sold as Norse today, the valknut is carved on Viking-Age objects: the Gotland picture stones Stora Hammars I and Tangelgarda, wooden objects from the Oseberg ship burial dated by dendrochronology to 834 AD, and the Anglo-Saxon Nene River ring.
What does the valknut mean?
No source says. The symbol is never named, drawn or explained in the Eddas, the sagas or any runic inscription. The standard scholarly reading, argued by Hilda Ellis Davidson, links it to Odin and the battle-slain because nearly every ancient occurrence sits in a funerary or sacrificial context. That is a well-founded inference, not a documented meaning. The longer version is in our valknut guide.
Did the Vikings call it a valknut?
No. Valknut, knot of the slain, is a modern term taken from later Norwegian folk usage and applied by scholars in the 20th century. The Viking-Age name for the figure is unrecorded.
What is the difference between the unicursal and tricursal valknut?
The tricursal form is three separate interlocked triangles, as on Stora Hammars I. The unicursal form is a single continuous line folded into three, as on Tangelgarda. Both are ancient and both are used in modern jewellery.
Is the valknut connected to Odin?
Indirectly and by context. On Stora Hammars I it stands beside a sacrificial scene attended by a spear-bearing figure usually read as Odin, and Odin held the power to bind and loosen the mind, which the interlaced form may echo. No text states the link. See also Mjolnir for a symbol whose meaning is documented.
Bibliography
- 1. Stora Hammars I picture stone, Lärbro parish, Gotland, c. 700–800 AD. Gotlands Museum, Visby.
- 2. Ellis Davidson, Hilda. Gods and Myths of Northern Europe. Penguin Books, 1964.
- 3. Simek, Rudolf. Dictionary of Northern Mythology, s.v. 'valknútr'. D. S. Brewer, 1993.
Cite this entry
VikingsBrand. “Valknut.” VikingsBrand Library, reviewed 24 July 2026, vikingsbrand.co/pages/library/valknut.